Tutorial 8: wfsWriteElement

wfsWriteElement is a handler
defined in the "Script Writer"
script, which is new to WFS 4. wfsWriteElement writes Lingo code for
you that allows you to make dynamic copies of elements of multi-sprites
that you have constructed in the Score.

Static sprites are sprites that you see in the Score. Normally you
drag Cast Members into the Score and compose movies that way, ie, normally
you compose movies entirely of static sprites. But you cannot destroy
static sprites and remain in the same frame of the movie. The way static
sprites are destroyed is to move to a different frame and have the static
sprite not be present in that frame. This can pose problems for the
number of features and options you can present users at the same time.

Dynamic sprites are created via puppeting sprite channels and populating
the channel with a cast member. You cannot see dynamic sprites in the
Score while the movie runs in authoring mode. But you can see them on
the stage.

Tutorial 8 is about
how to use wfsWriteElement to create dynamic elements of multi-sprites.
It goes step by step through an example of the use of wfsWriteElement
in the WFS48x.DIR source code. WFS48x.DIR is in the 'samples' folder
of your WFS documentation.

The tutorial also shows you how to destroy dynamic elements of multi-sprites.

There are 10 steps involved in using either wfsWriteMultiSprite, wfsWriteMultiSpriteFamily,
or wfsWriteElement. The documentation about the "Script Writer"
script outlines the generic 10 steps.
But the documentation of each of the three public handlers of the "Script
Writer" script (wfsWriteMultiSprite,
wfsWriteMultiSpriteFamily,
and wfsWriteElement) each
contains a very detailed example that goes step by step through the
10 steps of each particular handler.

It is recommended that you just go through the whole documentation
of wfsWriteElement to get
a detailed picture of how to use wfsWriteElement.